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Mordin Solus
Prof. Mordin Solus is a major character in the original Mass Effect video game trilogy. He is a Salarian Scientist who runs a clinic on Omega, and was the leader of the Salarians that re-created the genophage. Commander Shepard recruits him in his/her effort to take down the Collectors, and he becomes instrumental in curing the genophage if he survives. He is voiced by Micheal Beattle in the second game, while in the third game, he is voiced by William Salyers, who also voices Doctor Octopus. Background Mordin participated in a high-level meeting concerning the krogan's apparent adaptation to the genophage. The krogan needed protection from themselves, and the genophage was doing just that. It is up to the salarians to ensure the genophage doesn't fail, Mordin reasoned, and he proposed stronger measures to counteract the krogan's evolution. Even with incumbent salarian Councilor Valern requesting for alternatives, everyone present unanimously agreed to the proposal. It took Mordin less than a week of research and collaboration to create the modified strain, and one month later he and a team of STG operatives were already on Tuchanka. Mordin had a very specific location in mind and explained the mission parameters to the crew: his short-range genophage dispersal unit needed to be placed inside a canyon to protect it from the elements. Near the target site he entrusted his assistant with lugging the device, joking with old friend Captain Chaleen about the assistant's apparent clumsiness and surprising intelligence. The team went into subterranean tunnels and heard some repetitive noises. Mordin was in the process of deducing the cause when he saw at the end of the tunnel that the intended target site was occupied by krogan. A female krogan was hammering a pedestal and led her followers in praying to Kalros. Mordin was adamant in the device's exact placement against suggestions by teammates to plant it where they hid, citing shoddy results if otherwise. Unfortunately they were discovered by the krogan and fired upon. Mordin threw himself and Captain Chaleen from the line of fire. The captain ordered his team to fall back to the shuttle and diverted the attackers, but Mordin told them he had another idea. He ordered them to set explosives on the tunnels to provide another diversion while he and his assistant attempt to plant the device where originally intended. A krogan wielding a hammer tried smashing him to a pulp soon afterward, but he dodged it. He jumped onto the krogan's back and planted an omni-blade in the brute's head instead, boasting of salarian badassery and feeling proud of the exercise all the while. His assistant is astounded by what he just did, but Mordin just shushed him up and told him to bring the device. The female krogan waited for the salarians at the target site, hammer in hand and ready to kill the intruders. Mordin took it upon himself to square off with the female, entrusting the assistant with the device's safety and activation. The female hammered the ground in the hope of Kalros coming in and smashing the salarians, but Mordin was unimpressed. He fervently believed the krogan would become a threat, force war, and cause suffering if allowed a resurgence, and said as much. The female shared the horror of countless mothers suffering amidst the corpses of their stillborn children, blaming all of the anguish on him. The choice was difficult, Mordin tried to counter, but the explosives he ordered detonated over them at that moment. Mordin was recovered from the rubble by Captain Chaleen, who berated him for disobeying orders. The scientist salarian replied that he saw a chance and took it. Mordin, now missing his right cranial horn, was eased into a corner by the captain upon their return to the shuttle, and was admonished into not letting their teammates detonate places with them still inside. The injured salarian could only agree. His assistant came up to him next, and inquired about his dialogue with the female while bandaging his head. Mordin reassured the assistant of dire consequences if the krogan were cured of the genophage, and was unwilling to concede his beliefs on account of the very high risks. Personality Mordin is shown to be fast-talking and hyperactive even by salarian standards; Kelly Chambers describes him as being like a "hamster on coffee" and he hardly ever uses pronouns during conversation. He is easily distracted by intriguing scientific discoveries and is also prone to burying himself in his work, which he accomplishes with relish and a smile. However, past this outward image of cheerfulness however shows a somewhat more tortured and conflicted soul. Mordin's past involvement with the genophage has left him with feelings of guilt and though Mordin if confronted maintains that the genophage was necessary (and gives several solid arguments as to why) it is clear that he remains conflicted on the matter. On the way to his clinic, Shepard can hear several people describe Mordin as "not just a doctor". This is due to his days as a member of the Salarian Special Tasks Group, which has made him willing to take a life if he deems it necessary; he killed a squad of Blue Suns who tried to burn down his clinic and went so far as to put their bodies on display as a warning, as well as claiming that he would have killed the batarians who were attacking his assistant, Daniel, if he was in Shepard's position, describing the act of sparing them as risky. This in turn horrifies Daniel, who as a human doctor would have taken the Hippocratic oath, and so deplores the taking of lives regardless of circumstances. Aria describes him as someone who is "as likely to heal you as he is to shoot you", and says this is one of the things she admires about him. Mordin frequently shows signs of an ends-justify-the means philosophy, but not within some boundary of restraint. For one although Mordin is quite agreeable to killing those he feels are a danger to society and the well-being of others, he also refuses to kill with medicine and has never once done so, not even when being a part of the genophage. He is also very disgusted with the desperate actions taken by his former student Maelon Heplorn to cure the genophage, showing that he does not always believe the ends justify the means. Additionally, despite (or perhaps because of) his great intelligence, Mordin often has trouble seeing evidence that disagree with his preconceptions, as shown by how long it took him to figure out that Maelon came to Clan Weyrloc voluntarily to cure the genophage, rather than being kidnapped as he had assumed; Maelon even points this out and claims that Mordins's had this problem for as long as the two have known each other. As a salarian, Mordin copes with grief and other emotional issues very quickly, which is shown when he recovered remarkably quickly from the shock of Maelon's brutal experiments (and killing him, if he did so). This is due to the fact that salarians over the age of 40 are quite rare, and so their lives are much too short to waste time reminiscing, which Mordin uses as an explanation as to why they don't get married. But even here, closer inspection reveals that Mordin is not quite as adept at working past old ghosts as he would lead others to believe, and Mordin even admits that salarians are ultimately no emotionally healthier than other species and can easily become obsessed with something, like Maelon did with the genophage. Mass Effect 2 In Mass Effect 2, one of the first people Commander Shepard can recruit to fight the Collectors is Mordin. He helps him clear a plague that is spreading on Omega, and then for his help he joins the team. Mordin also helps create a means by which the Normandy Crew can battle the Collectors without being immobilized by their seeker swarms. It is later learned that Mordin helped upgrade the Krogan Genophage to keep the Krogan from overcoming it, and though he justifies his actions as being a necessary evil he clearly feels some remorse over them. When he learns that his old protege Maelon has been kidnapped by Krogans on Tuchunka, Mordin sets out to rescue him, and is again confronted with the morally grey nature of his past. Finally locating Maelon, Mordin and Shepard learn that Maelon is there by choice, and intends to cure the Genophage no matter the moral cost. Disgusted with his protege's actions, Mordin resolves to kill him, but can be talked out of it by Shepard. Shepard must also decide to tell Mordin what to do with Maelon's remaining data, and whether or not it can be used for a greater good or if it is not worth keeping. Mass Effect 3 In Mass Effect 3 (assuming he survived the sucide mission) Mordin Solus returns helping either Urdnot Wrex or Wreav try to cure the Krogan Genophage. If Shepard chooses to help, Mordin will ultimately sacrifice himself to disperse the cure. But if Shepard chooses to sabotage the Genophage Cure, they must either kill Mordin in cold blood or convince the doctor to stand down, which they can only do if both Urdnot Wrex and Eve are both dead. If Mordin survives, he can be contacted before the final battle. Trivia pl:Mordin Solus Category:Mass Effect Heroes Category:Science Fiction Heroes Category:Video Game Heroes Category:Status dependent upon Player choice Category:Aliens Category:Male Category:Doctors and Scientists Category:Anti Hero Category:Martyr Category:Deceased Category:Neutral Good Category:Elderly Category:Elementals Category:Healers Category:Lethal Category:The Messiah Category:Betrayed Category:Extremists Category:Comic Relief Category:Genius Category:Tragic Category:Thrill-Seekers Category:Chaotic Good Category:Poor